Yangarra Hickinbotham Grenache 2020 1500ml

95 POINTS

Ned Goodwin - Halliday Wine Companion

From old, unirrigated vines at Hickinbotham, in Clarendon.The only cuvée produced outside of Yangarra Estate. Destemmed, crushed and tipped into a ceramic egg where it remained on skins for 170 days. Gorgeous. Pinosity in spades. Noble bitterness. Lavender and white pepper. Pink grapefruit pulp and sapid, sour-cherry accents. Like the most glorious amaro with a slice of Sicilian orange, this plays a finessed card of consummate elegance, racy length, crunchy saline tannins and latent power. Brethren to Ovitelli in terms of shape, if not a bit looser and more flamboyant at the seams. A belly dancer in a souk of carnal desire. Scintillating, uber-aromatic grenache.

95 POINTS

Matt Walls - Decanter

A fairly pale but luminous purple-red in the glass. It’s full-bodied and mouthfilling with lots of puppy fat, vibrant raspberry and strawberry fruit and garrigue herbs. The keen, deep-set acidity feels natural, it’s low but balanced. This has layers and movement. Really quite fluid, with no heaviness. A sandy, mineral touch on the finish. This has complexity and depth, and will improve with age. From unirrigated bush vines planted in 1962 at 225m altitude. Fermented and matured in egg-shaped amphora.

95 POINTS

James Suckling

A creamy and fine-tannined grenache with perfectly ripe strawberry and hints of tile. It’s medium-bodied. Fresh and fine. Lightly chewy. Orange peel. Refined and elegant. Terracotta. No wood. Excellent aging potential.

95 POINTS

Gary Walsh - The Wine Front

From Clarendon, a small plot planted in 1962. Raised in anfora, with 72% remaining on skins for a whopping 156 days. Yes! GW: Spicy, floral, raspberry, red cherry, a sweet clay-like earthiness, almond and flowering basil? Well, hello McLaren Vale Burgundy. Fresh raspberry, a little earthy and nutty, but succulent, and yet, all this firm brick dusty tannin pushing through, almost peppery in a way, a smattering of dried herb, some cranberry acidity on a long slightly warm finish, but gee energy is pulsating through this wine. It’s terrific. 95 points MB: While the 2020 Ovitelli has this levity, purity and freshness above and beyond Hickinbotham, there’s no doubting the pedigree, tannin prowess and finesse of this wine. I prefer the drinkability and drive of Ovitelli, but I admire the Hickinbotham more, in a way. Richness, ripeness of fruit, lifted on trails of pomegranate juice and rose hip tea, grippy tannins go gummy and draw the wine long, it has a mouth-watering fresh finish at the lingering depths of the red fruit characters. Dried herbs, anise, fennel, brambles, some hazelnut and ashy clove for complexity. Serious stuff, very, very good. 95 points

95 POINTS

Gabrielle Poy - The Real Review

Alluring notes of violets, licorice and chocolate-dipped raspberries lead into a ripe and cushioned core full of life. There's a pleasing texture to the wine, a gliding tannin with a fine chew. A warming alcohol glow appears on the finish. This is heady and vibrant with dimension

95 POINTS

Christina Pickard - Wine Enthusiast

From 800 million year old soapstone, sandstone, clay soils in Australia's premier Grenache region, McLaren Vale, Hickinbotham is set for the long haul while still being approachable now. It's reticent when first poured, so give it some aeration. Once open, there's oodles of ripe, fresh strawberry fruit, and something a touch medicinal. Behind that lurk cherry cordial, orange rind, floral and spice notes. The palate is bright and fruity, with an almost surprising tug of raw, textural tannins. A distinctive cherry tang lingers on the long finish. Graceful and silky but with power and age-worthiness.

94 POINTS

Erin Larkin - Robert Parker Wine Advocate

The 2020 Hickinbotham Grenache was sourced from estate-owned bush vines (planted in 1962 at 225 meters in elevation) and was fermented and matured entirely in concrete egg shaped amphorae called "cocciopesto." Darker and denser than the Ovitelli, this shows a splay of blood, shaved deli meat, pink peppercorn and satsuma plum. It is heavier and more tannic too, delivering more intensity and gravitas, if that's what you're into. Another impressive release, it lingers long and fine.